Is my child wired for math?

Does my child have the gene for math? Is my child quick at math? Does my child get math? Is my child a natural with math?

These are all irrelevant questions, even damaging, in my opinion. 3 reasons why:

1. Fixed mindset is harmful to your child – in the book Mindset, author??? Clearly differentiate a Fixed mindset from a Growth mindset. Even if you think your child is wired for math and you think you are reinforcing a positive image of himself, you could be hurting him. Because a fixed mindset is fixed – you got it or you don’t got it. So one day, inevitably, your child will encounter a rough patch in math. Water it’s in 6th grade learning Solving Equations or in 9th grade starting at a Geometry Proof worksheet. Will your child change his mind about himself and decide he don’t get math after all? That’s a fixed mindset. A growth mindset will be that quiet voice in your child that says, ‘you don’t get this yet, I’m going to keep working on it, or I’m going to get someone to explain it better to me. When your young child comes home with an A+ on his math test, instead of saying “You are so good at math!” (Fixed mindset), say “You are diligent with your math homework, look where it got you?” (Growth mindset). “Is my child wired for math” is an irrelevant question. A better question to ask yourself is, “How am I helping him to grow and development his math skills?”
2. Many bright kids struggle with math because of gaps, not because of lack of ability. It’s a cop out to say, math was hard for me, it’s hard for my kid too, we are just not wired for math. That’s a total cop-out. The biggest reason bright kids struggle with math is that they have underlying gaps that have not been resolved. Easy example, if your child does not have a mental framework for adding and subtracting numbers without finger counting, missing addenda ( 5 + __ = 11) will seem a lot harder. If your child can multiply fluently by 4th grade, fractions, measurement conversions, word problems, all seem harder than they really are. If your child’s pre-algebra skills are not solid before he starts algebra, what do you think will be his experience? So, don’t judge a child’s “math gene” by where he is. It’s not a good question. I’ve seen so many transformations in children when gaps are add
3. Any child can do become a stronger math student. If you ask a child in America what it takes to succeed in math, they often say, “You have to be wired for math, got to have the gene for it.” If you ask a child in Singapore what it takes to succeed in math, they will give you a very different answer. They will say, “You got to work hard”. What a difference. And it’s a difference that makes a whole world of difference. From my 15 years of running a math learning center and working with thousands of kids, I landed on this wisdom: “Kids don’t hate math. What they hate is being intimidated, embarrassed, frustrated by math”. When a child’s undiagnosed gaps are addressed, when the child is guided into a strong number sense mental framework that helps her understand concepts in a deeper and more conceptual, connected way, you’ll be amazed at the change in attitude, confidence, and progress. It’s not a good question. I’ve seen too many transformations in children.

Number Sense does start early. It’s not because of genes, or wiring, or talent. For sure, they crop up here and there, but it’s overrated and not much use to you. What’s. More valuable to you is to help your child developer a strong number sense early so your child’s attitude, confidence and number sense mental framework is primed for math at school.